Premie Baby Boy and a Story of Grace // Charlotte NC Newborn Photographs

Sometimes you do something that’s so close to your heart, you don’t know how to start writing about it… (not just me, right??). Well, today I was reminiscing today with our babysitter about one of my dear college friends, and I took that as a sign to start typing.

A freshman at a local university, our babysitter’s stuck taking a mandatory Spanish class despite being almost fluent, but really enjoying it because she can just shoot the breeze with the professor. I shared how freshman year I got to know an amazing friend — who became a sorority sister, fellow English major, roommate, just one of my closest college girls — in freshman Spanish, where we had that same laid-back relationship with our hilarious professor. Fast forward 18 years (yikes!!), and we’ve attended together umpteen weddings, bachelorette parties, baby showers, summer girls’ reunions, and more… still close, and now bonded over jobs, married life, motherhood, and all the grown up stuff that comes after college.

In July I went down to North Carolina to photograph her in her latest life chapter: the arrival of her second son.

Baby G. is a miracle, a blessing, who has brought so much joy to this family. He arrived at just 33 weeks and 6 days. His twin sister — fully embracing the big sister role — stayed by his side until he was ready. It’s heartbreaking, but she’s now watches over him from above. He truly had a guardian angel with him, as he rocked his time in the NICU and went home after less than three weeks there. And check out how he rocked these photos at just a month old (still before his due date)!

(I’m biased, but is that not one of the cutest baby yawns ever??)

Baby G.’s big brother is one of the sweetest, most polite, good-hearted three-year olds I’ve met. He clearly loves his baby brother, and even at just young age he seems to understand that joy and hugs are the best medicine (and maybe some PJ Mask reenacting in the dining room). These boys are going to conquer the world.

And his parents… I aspire to handle life’s challenges as gracefully as them, and ditto with parenting a three-year old!!

I try to share musings on parenthood, photography, or life in these posts… there is so much I’ve admired and learned from watching this chapter in my friend’s life unfold. But I want to point out the purple butterfly that graces Baby G.’s room, and to emphasize how beautifully his parents have worked through grief alongside gratitude, and ensured their baby girl’s story is not forgotten, but incorporated into their family’s. This session so genuine, emotions raw and spoken about, and through that, I could see so much healing.